A nurse is providing preoperative teaching for a client. Which of the following outcomes should the nurse expect?

Choice A reason: Rubbing hands together to remove C. diff spores is correct, as mechanical friction during hand washing with soap and water dislodges spores. C. diff spores are resistant to alcohol, requiring physical removal, making this statement appropriate and not requiring further teaching.

Choice B reason: Using soap and water for hand washing is essential for C. diff, as spores resist alcohol-based sanitizers. Soap and water mechanically remove spores, preventing transmission. This statement reflects proper infection control knowledge, indicating no need for further teaching.

Choice C reason: Ensuring family members wash their hands frequently is appropriate, as C. diff spreads via fecal-oral transmission. Hand washing with soap and water prevents spore spread to others, making this statement correct and consistent with infection control protocols.

Choice D reason: Claiming alcohol-based sanitizers are most effective for C. diff is incorrect, as spores are resistant to alcohol. Soap and water are required to physically remove spores. This statement indicates a misunderstanding of C. diff infection control, necessitating further teaching.

Choice A reason: Finding comfort in family connections is typical of grief, not clinical depression. Grief involves sadness but often retains social engagement, whereas depression involves persistent isolation and anhedonia due to serotonin and dopamine dysregulation, making this choice incorrect.

Choice B reason: Loss of appetite occurs in both grief and clinical depression, as stress or serotonin imbalances affect appetite regulation. However, it is not specific to depression, as transient appetite loss is common in grief, making it less definitive than anhedonia.

Choice C reason: Loss of interest in pleasurable activities, or anhedonia, is a hallmark of clinical depression, reflecting disrupted dopamine reward pathways in the brain. Unlike grief’s temporary sadness, this persistent symptom impairs daily functioning, making it a key indicator of clinical depression.

Choice D reason: Intense moments of sadness are characteristic of grief, a normal response to loss, and do not necessarily indicate clinical depression. Depression involves persistent, pervasive symptoms, not episodic sadness, which is driven by situational triggers rather than chronic neurochemical imbalances.